The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) is an umbrella organization representing number of Muslim institutions in the Montreal region.

Muslim Council of Montreal dismayed over banning of face veil in citizenship ceremonies

December 13, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Montreal,
Quebec, December 13th, 2011-
The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) expressed its dismay over Monday’s
announcement by Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney banning
Muslim women from wearing facial veils when taking their Canadian citizenship
oath.

“It
is outrageous to hear our federal ministers say that the wearing of a face veil
by a woman who elects to do so out of her own free will in accordance to her
religious obligations is against Canadian values,” stated Salam Elmenyawi,
president of MCM. “Mr. Kenney forgets that the protection of religious freedoms
and expression, as well as respect and tolerance for the religious beliefs and
practices of others, are also Canadian values that we cherish in our
multicultural country. So long as the women wearing the face veil identify
themselves and do not pose any harm to anyone else, it is not Mr. Kenney’s
place to deny them their rights and freedoms.”

Mr.
Kenney stated that in order to prevent citizenship fraud it is required to be
able to actually see the faces of the people to ensure they are reciting the
oath. However, MCM notes that the oath-takers at a citizenship ceremony routinely
recite the oath en masse, making it difficult to even ascertain that those with
uncovered faces are reciting. Moreover, those desiring citizenship are not just
required to vocalize the oath, but to sign it as well, given that the
recitation is mostly symbolic and that some, like those with speech defects and
children, are not able to recite it.

“By
suggesting that the women covering their face are not in fact reciting the oath
is casting unjustified suspicion on their commitment to Canada and only seeks
to marginalize the Canadian Muslim community,” Elmenyawi said. “Why are only
they singled out while no provisions are taken to ensure that everyone is
reciting? Instead of perpetuating negative stereotypes and fueling suspicion
against innocent law-abiding Canadians, our government would be better served
to seek a compromise to accommodate the religious beliefs of others when needed.”

“We
are also disturbed to see Mr. Kenney stating that the face veil is not a
religious obligation, as though he is qualified to interpret the rulings of
Islamic jurisprudence and tell others how to observe their faith,” Elmenyawi
said. “While all Muslim women do not choose to wear the face veil, the wearing
of it is still from a legitimate mainstream school of thought in Islam. His
comments regarding the Hajj only further demonstrate his utter lack of
understanding. It is also preposterous to suggest that all Canadian Muslim
women who wear the face veil are extremists, or that they are not equal, productive,
contributing members of Canadian society. If a woman chooses to dress a certain
way out of her own free will, she should not be made to feel as though she is
not a legitimate Canadian, or that she is against Canadian values.”

The Muslim Council of Montreal (MCM) is an umbrella
organization representing a number of Islamic institutions in the Montreal
region. There are over 275,000 Muslims in Montreal, about 1,200,000 in Canada
and 1.9 billion worldwide.